Chapter 12 – Things Keep Getting Better

You came into my life
And the world never looked so bright
It's true, you bring out the best in me
When you are around

(Betty Who – Things Keep Getting Better)

There was a spring in Naomi's step that she thought she had lost. She was still grieving for the loss of her brother but with the impending nuptials cancelled and her boxes unpacked back at home, she was strangely happy. The list of things that infringed on that happiness was ever growing - Kelly and Matt's feud, the voicemail from her former mother-in-law, the nausea that seemed to follow her around – but it was Girl's Night and she had news, "I have tequila!" She called as she let herself into Kelly and Leslie' apartment.

Shay grumbled from the kitchen where she was prepping margaritas, "Darden, tell me how is it that you still have a key to our apartment? You're not even sleeping with him,"
"Cos he loves me… and I bring brownies." She held up the container which made Shay momentarily forget her inquisition into Naomi's familiarity with their apartment.
"Salted Caramel?"
"Of course," Naomi handed them over and looked back to the spiral staircase across the loft, "Is Kelly here?"
"Yeah, he's in the shower…. Possibly with a lady friend", Shay had already cracked into the brownies and spoke through a mouthful of chocolate.
"Blonde?"

"That's the one!"

Naomi placed a canvas tote bag on the kitchen counter, filled with booze and snacks for a long overdue girl's night, "I passed her in the hallway, she did not look happy. There's a tub of mint choc chip in there…."

Shay grabbed Naomi's empty hand and her mouth dropped open. Naomi quickly pulled her hand back, "I need to tell Kelly first."

"How long have you been sitting on this? Wait, this means I don't need a dress…"
"SHAY! I will tell you everything as soon as I've spoken Kelly, and you've made me a margarita," Self-consciously, Naomi covered her finger with her other hand and darted up to Kelly's room. She knocked on the door before pushing it open, "You decent?"

"I will be in a moment," Kelly shot back from his bathroom, the room slightly steamy from the door that was ajar. Naomi wrinkled her nose at the state of Kelly's room, his clothes strewn across the floor and furniture and his sheets rumpled from his overnight guest's antics. She reached into his dresser for a clean shirt before laying it out over the edge of his bed and perching delicately on top of it, careful not to touch any of his linen.

"So what was this one called?" She laughed as she could almost hear Kelly's forgetful expression in the mirror, followed by a series of murmurs and 'erms', "Memorable was she?" Naomi crossed her legs and placed her left hand under her chin, trying to make the empty finger obvious to Kelly.
"Is that judgement I hear from you, Pixie?" Kelly pushed the door fully open and sauntered out of the bathroom, a towel riding low on his hips. Naomi covered her mouth to stifle a snort.

She waved her hand at him, "Does it ever concern you about our relationship that this is considered 'decent'?"

"Not at all; what are you doing here anyway?"

"What so I need excuses to come see you now?" Naomi was making an obvious effort to flourish her hand and draw Kelly's attention to it, but wasn't making much progress. She threw her arms up, "Oh for goodness sakes, LOOK, you moron."
She thrust her hand towards him and waited for the realisation to cross his face, "You're… you're not wearing your ring."

"No, I'm not… I gave it back to Harrison," There was a glimmer of pure joy that swept across Kelly's eyes before reverting to the same concern he'd had since Andy's death.
He stammered, "You're not getting married?"

Nodding in response, Naomi allowed herself to smile slightly as Kelly launched himself at her and crushed her against his bed in a bear hug.
"Ewww," she whimpered as her head fell back on the sheets that she'd been so careful to avoid although she allowed Kelly to wrap his arms around her and return the hug. She felt the brush of fabric against her ankles and didn't think anything of it until she felt him pressing against her, her voice raising an octave, "Kelly, your towel…."

He laughed, kissed her cheek and then pushed himself up off the bed while Naomi covered her eyes with her hand, "Oh come on, it's not like you haven't seen any of this before…"
"Would you like your best friend's baby sister staring at your junk?" She retorted, keeping her eyes squeezed shut beneath her hands as she tried to sit up again.

Kelly shuddered, hating it when he was reminded that she was, in fact, his best friend's baby sister and quickly pulled on a pair of sweatpants, "Okay. I'm decent. I promise."

"You really need to clean your room; it's disgusting." Naomi muttered, pulling her hand away from her eyes and Kelly grabbed it, running his finger over the space that once occupied a ring.

"You need any help moving your stuff?"
"It's already done. Matt helped me."

"Whatever…" He glared at the steam that was still rolling out of the bathroom and Naomi punched him lightly.
"Kelly, get over yourself. He has a truck. You can fit a grand total of 3 boxes in your Camaro. Remember? You tried to help me move into that apartment in college and ended having to fork out $200 an hour for a U-Haul?" They both smiled at the memory and Naomi realised how nostalgic she was being at the moment, it scared her slightly.

"You really called off the engagement…"

"Andy's funeral was the nail in the proverbial coffin."

"I still don't understand what this guy's problem was…" Kelly trailed off as Naomi gave him a pointed look, "…Okay, maybe I do. But to make a scene at your brother's funeral, it just seems…"
"Do you know what? It's not our problem anymore… Harrison Archibald is out of my life for good and even though I probably have to deal with his mother, it is for the best."

"His mother?"
"I called off the wedding with two weeks to go… I'd be an idiot to think that there wouldn't be backlash from her." She rested her head against Kelly's shoulder, always finding it strange how much comfort she found in his touch.

He pecked her forehead lightly, "Want me to go slash her tires?"

Naomi sighed disapprovingly and stood up, "Don't even joke about stuff like that… the woman is terrifying."

"HOW LONG DO YOU NEED, DARDEN?!" Naomi and Kelly both laughed as Shay's voice shrieked up the stairs, "YOUR MARGARITA IS GETTING WARM!"

"Oh right, it's Girl's Night," Kelly grimaced, knowing that in a few hours Dawson, Shay and Naomi would be very tipsy, sobbing over some Nicolas Sparks movie and making their way through a pint of ice cream. He'd been pestering Shay for the last three weeks to have the girl's over to distract Naomi from her grief. The moment at the funeral where she'd broken down in his arms had been her only display of emotions and although Kelly knew that Naomi liked to pretend to be tough, it worried him that she was bottling it all up. There was something that she wasn't telling him; something weighing on her. It wasn't calling off the wedding or even Andy's death. Something was going on with his Pixie and he didn't like being left in the dark.

Xxx

Naomi sat in the dark of her room, propped up against the throw pillows that took up half her bed. It had been almost a month since Andy had died and she hadn't slept since Kelly turned up on her doorstep. The little sleep that she did get whilst curled up next to him was plagued by nightmares, memories and the most vivid of dreams; it often took all her strength not to wake up screaming. She didn't know how much longer she could go on like this. Tonight, they were on shift and as it had been for 15 years, there was no chance of her getting any sleep.

Extracting herself from amongst the cushions, Naomi padded through her house turning lights on as she did. She grabbed a photo album from the shelf and sat in the hallway with a coffee, flicking through the memories of her brother while the blinking of her answering machine seared into the corner of her eye.

Andy, Matt and Kelly had always made fun of her old fashioned tape answering machine with its clunky buttons and cassette tapes but she'd had enough dealings with intricate P.D cases to know that digital and modern wasn't always best. Antonio had insisted that she keep the machine, just in case, after Naomi helped him with a Vice case a few years back and there were only five people who knew the number for her landline. Naomi pulled the machine down off the hall table and placed it next to her, rewinding the tape as she did. She took a deep breath before pressing play and waited for her brother's voice to fill the room, "Hey Nim-bob, it's me. Knowing me I've probably got the date wrong or I'm late and you're already in your meeting so… I just wanted to say Good Luck! I'm so proud of you and everything you've achieved. Chicago is lucky to have you on their side… Anyway, I love you and I'll see you at Mom's on Friday… Don't forget the crumble."

She traced her finger over the pictures in the album as she rewound the tape again, "Hey Nimbob, it's me…"

Again and again, she played the tape listening to Andy's last words to her, merely moments before he'd gone out on call, "Hey Nim-bob, it's me…"

Tears slipped down her cheeks as she played the tape for the final time, barely able to keep her eyes open. The album lay in her lap open pictures of her nephews. Her first time holding Ben, Griffin's christening and her favourite picture of Andrew on the day he discovered he was going to be a father for the first time.

"Hey Nim-bob, it's me…"

Naomi rested her head against the wall as she drifted off, the sound of her brother's voice lulling her to sleep as her mind stopped racing. When she woke up the next morning, she was curled up in the hallway and clinging to the photo album, Ben and Griffin smiling up at her from the glossy pages. She sat bolt upright and knocked the play button as she did, "Hey Nim-bob…"

"Oh shit…"

A.N. The plot thickens. What do you think Naomi's secret it?

It's been a hectic week of job interviews, hangovers and wisdom teeth so I'm sorry that I'm a tiny bit late. This is a little bit of a filler chapter which I usually hate but I really like the intricacies and oddities of Kelly and Naomi's relationship. I'm planning on a couple of flashback chapters to explore how they got to this point and I've got a really juicy passage from Spring Break in college already written.

Please let me know what you think; I'd really appreciate some critical feedback although I love all the 'love' that Heart of This House is getting.

All My Love,

~ C.I

P.S: Does anyone watch Queer Eye?

xxx